Born January 21, 1940, in Columbus, Ohio, Jack Nicklaus is a former professional golfer. Better known as “The Golden Bear,” Nicklaus is considered by many to be the greatest golfer to ever life. This is a title heavily disputed, as modern golf fans and enthusiasts single out Tiger Woods as the greatest to ever play.

As it stands now, Nicklaus has won more events and more majors than any other golfer in the world. So if anyone wishes to dispute his status as the best ever, they need to start topping his gargantuan numbers in order to disprove it.

Nicklaus picked up the golf clubs when he was just ten-years-old, and immediately people started to notice that he was a prodigy in the sport. The first he tournament he ever entered, the Scioto Country Club Juvenile Championship, he won easily. Shortly thereafter, Nicklaus began lessons with a local professional golfer named Jack Grout.

By the time Nicklaus was 13, Grout was a serious influence in his life, and a young Nicklaus had already broken 70 for eighteen holes and held a 3 handicap. Nicklaus' rise to fame was quick and astonishing. As one of Ohio's top amateur players, Nicklaus cleaned up the circuit, winning nearly every trophy, and took the Junior Championship in 1953, 54, 55, and the Ohio State Championship in 1956. Nicklaus also entered the U.S. Amateur championship in 1956, but failed to claim victory until 1959.

Nicklaus remained in Ohio to attend college at OSU and majored in pre-pharmacy. Nicklaus would go on to win the majority of collegiate tournaments in which he competed, and took the victory in the 1961 U.S. Amateur. That same year, Nicklaus joined the professional ranks and set out to play on the PGA tour.

In 1962, Nicklaus and his newfound rival, Arnold Palmer, squared off at the U.S. Open. They two ended up tied at the end of regulation. In the head-to-head playoff, the upstart Nicklaus beat the heavily favored Palmer, and thus a legend was born.

Though the two rarely played against each other over the course of their respective careers, their rivalry is often considered one of the most heated in golf. The legions of Palmer fans, nicknamed “Arnie's Army,” depicted Nicklaus the “bad guy” and made sure to root against him for the duration of his career.

The two golfers had split the golf world down the middle. Nicklaus, who was short, heavyset, and had boyish looks, was thought to be invading Palmer's territory. Palmer, who was tall and tan and looked more like a movie star, was the “everyman” of golf. Although the fans constantly bickered, Palmer and Nicklaus seemed to get along quite well.

In his career, Nicklaus ended up winning 73 PGA Tour events, and has won 18 professional majors. He has always finished in 2nd place 19 times, and 3rd 9 times. With these numbers, no one can doubt the greatness of the Golden Bear.